Bud Anderson went to England with the 357th Fighter Group in 1943, the first Eighth Air Force Group to be equipped with the P-51 Mustang. He got himself on the score sheet on one of the first Berlin missions, dog fighting with a bunch of Me109s who had set upon a straggling B-17. On 29th June 1944, leading his squadron on a mission to Leipzig, they ran into a formation of Fw190s. In the ensuing battle Anderson shot down the leader, and two more Fw190s. After a short rest in the U.S., Bud returned for a second tour, just in time for the 357th's big day on 27th November 1944. With the 353rd they took on a huge formation of some 200 enemy fighters, Anderson adding three more to his score. He finished the war with 16 air victories and many more probables.

Colonel C E Bud Anderson - Signed Robert Taylor Art Signatures

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Looking for Trouble by Robert Taylor.

When Hitler invaded Poland the British found themselves at war - and isolated. Desperate for new fighters and with production at full capacity they turned to the US aircraft manufacturer North American Aviation who were convinced they had the answer for Britain's needs - but it was still on the drawing board. They were, however, sure they could meet the deadline and incredibly, within the space of just four months the company had their brand new machine in the air. The Mustang was a triumph - conceived and born in a shorter period than any other significant aircraft in history and testament to its designer Edgar Schmued, and the people who built it. Delivered to the RAF in October 1941, it was fast, manoeuvrable, hard-hitting and, by the time it was combined with the legendary Rolls-Royce Merlin engine, was capable of outperforming anything the enemy could throw at it. With the arrival of the long-range fighter the heavy bombers of the USAAF could now be escorted all the way .........

Dominating the skies over Germany, P-51s of the 4th Fighter Group - The Eagles - sweep across the cloud tops, their pilots scanning the distant horizon for any signs of the Luftwaffe. They are ready for trouble should the enemy decide to chance their luck. The greatness of the Mustang is beyond doubt; it was the fighter pilot's ultimate machine. Tough, hard-hitting, it handled beautifully and - once the mighty Merlin engine had been included - possessed a performance unrivalled by any single piston-engined fighter of World War II. British inspired and American built, the P-51 was the aircraft the eager young pilots of the Eighth Air Force had been waiting for. Formed in September 1942 from the RAF Eagle Squadrons, the Fourth Fighter Group was the oldest fighter unit in the Eighth Air Force. Under the command of Don Blakeslee, described as probably the best fighter leader of the war, the combined air and ground victories notched up by 'The Eagles' during World .........

With the morning sun glinting on their fuselages, P-51 Mustangs of the 78th Fighter Group cross the Dutch coastline far below, as they head back towards their base at Duxford, England at the end of a long sweep east of the Rhine crossing, Spring 1945. The final months of the war in Europe lie ahead, and for the P-51 pilots victory is within sight. Finally, after years of toil, the sky was theirs.

P-51 Mustangs of the 357th Fighter Group clash with Me109s in close combat as they struggle for air superiority over the heart of Germany, during the desperate days of 1945. It had begun - the end game was inexorably in play. The final defeat of Germany and the end of Nazi tyranny was almost within sight but in the skies over Germany the defiant remnants of the Luftwaffe fought on with savage determination. Ever since the long-range American P-51 escort fighters had first appeared, the skies over the Reich had witnessed grim encounters with the Mustangs taking on the Luftwaffe as they tried to stop the heavy bombers of the USAAF reaching their targets. By early 1945 it was a losing battle, but still the Luftwaffe fought on and, in the resulting maelstrom of combat, the Mustang pilots still had their work cut out against these battle hardened, expert pilots. Robert Taylor's superb drawing dramatically reconstructs one such clash in early 1945 as P-51 Mustangs of the 357th Figh.........

It had taken almost six years of continual air fighting for the Allied forces to attain complete and total air superiority over the Luftwaffe. At the outbreak of World War II the mighty German Air Force had appeared invincible but the ensuing Battle of Britain gave the Luftwaffe its first taste of what was to come. When America joined the war, bringing with her to Europe ne wtypes of fighters and bombers, the writing must have been clearly chalked on the wall of Hitlers bunker. Unleashing the full power of the Eighth Air Force against the Third Reich by day, and with the RAF Bomber Commands constant attacks by night, production in Germanys aircraft and munitions factories became fatally depleted. In the air the Allied fighter pilots were beginning to dominate the skies, and by the spring on 1945, had achieved complete air superiority. It had been a long and bitter struggle, fought with great courage and sacrifice.

Badly marked by Focke-Wulf 190's the B-17 The Peacemaker of the 91st Bomb Group limps towards the sanctuary of the English coast escorted by P-51B Mustangs of the 361st Fighter Group. To keep her flying the crew are jettisoning everything that they can. The Peacemaker made it back to Bassingbourne that day, eight others did not.

The scene depicted took place in January 1945 as P-51 Mustang fighters of the 357th Fighter Group have engaged a force of Messerschmitt Me109 fighters. Captain Robert Foy in Little Shrimp of the 363rd Squadron engages one of the Bf109s in a daring head-on pass as Republic P-47 Thunderbolts of the 56th Fighter Group climb to join the fray. From the right, more than a dozen Luftwaffe fighters are vectoring to the massive dogfight.

The ubiquitous North American P-51 Mustang, which many consider to be the best all-around fighter of WW II, owes its origins to the British Air Ministry. Following Britains entry into WW II in 1939, the RAF was interested in purchasing additional fighter aircraft from American sources, particularly the Curtiss P-40. Curtiss, which was busy, was unable to guarantee timely delivery so the British approached North American Aviation as a possible second source for the P-40. North American chose to propose its own fighter design which would use the same Allison engine as the P-40. Utilizing new laminar flow wings, the North American fighter was expected to have performance better than the P-40. Developed in record time the new aircraft was designated as a Mustang I by the Brits, whereas the USAAF ordered two for evaluation which were designated XP-51 Apaches. Intrigued with the possibility of using this aircraft also as a dive bomber, North American proposed this to the USAAF which decided to order 500 of the P-51 aircraft to be modified for dive bombing use. Designated as the A-36 Invader, this version of the Mustang utilized dive flaps, and bomb racks under each wing. Some reinforcing of the structural members was also required because of the G-forces to be encountered in dive bombing. A-36s entered combat service with the USAAF prior to any P-51s. In early 1943 the 86th and 27th Fighter Bomber Groups of the 12th Air Force began flying A-36s out of Northern Africa. Despite some early problems with instability caused by the dive flaps, the A-36 was effective in light bombing and strafing roles. It was not, however, capable of dog fighting with German fighters, especially at higher altitudes. Despite these drawbacks one USAAF pilot, Captain Michael T. Russo, who served with the 16th Bomb Squadron of the 27th Fighter Bomber Group, was credited with five confirmed aerial victories in the A-36, thereby becoming the first mustang ace.

Squadrons for : Colonel C E Bud Anderson

A list of all squadrons known to have been served with by Colonel C E Bud Anderson. A profile page is available by clicking the squadron name.